Walking Dead gets development deal

Frank Darabont, writer of the Oscar winning Shawshank Redemption, is close to finalising a development deal with AMC to write and direct a series adaptation of Robert Kirkman‘s The Walking Dead, entertainment magazine Variety reports.

Joel Stillerman, AMC’s senior VP of programming, production and original content, said the series would stay faithful to Kirkman’s work, adding that the project appealed because of “the quality of the storytelling”.

“This is not about zombies popping out of closets,” Stillerman said. “This is a story about survival, and the dynamics of what happens when a group is forced to survive under these circumstances. The world (in ‘Walking Dead’) is portrayed in a smart, sophisticated way.”